A Game of Shogi
by jokergirl2001
Summary: After Shikari Nara woke up in a foreign place, she somehow ended up as a ward at Winterfell. Longing for her old home, but content that she ended up with the honorable Starks, the unambitious girl had no idea of the events to follow when winter comes. fem!ShikamaruxMany.
1. Chapter 1

"Laziness is the mother of all bad habits. But ultimately she is a mother and we should respect her." -Shikamaru Nara

* * *

 **Chapter One:**

 **A Cloudless Sky.**

* * *

Shikari Nara, nine year old daughter of Shikaku and Yoshino Nara, heiress of the Nara clan, was a smart girl. Though, all of her peers, with the exception of her childhood friends Choji and Ino, thought she was simply a loser like her fellow classmate Naruto. Shikari didn't care that people saw her as a loser, in fact she actually enjoyed being seen as a loser.

Why?

Because no one expected anything of her.

Which meant she was free to just waste her years watching clouds and taking naps.

More often than not, Ino or Yoshino would interrupt her lazy habits, but all in all Shikari Nara was content with her life. She was content with just graduating the Academy, becoming a shinobi, reach Chunin and serve her village for until she got married. Then, she'd just raise two children, a girl first and then a boy, while supporting her husband and playing board games, taking naps and watching the clouds.

As the heiress of the Nara clan, she knew her life wouldn't end up being so simple. She was cynical like that.

She was right, because _everything_ changed when she woke up freezing and laying in the snow in a place she didn't recognize. Quickly sitting up, the nine year old girl hid her arms in the modest green kimono she had worn to bed the night before.

"K-kai," the girl uttered, releasing a little bit of her chakra.

Unsurprisingly, her surroundings didn't change. She hadn't really expected it to work either way, because no one would have placed her under a Genjutsu in her own compound while she was sleeping. It was a known fact that Genjutsu on an unconscious person could have dire effects, and no one would dare do it to her, lest they wanted to see _why_ her father was named the commander of the Jonin force.

"T-troublesome," Shikari sighed as she looked over her surroundings.

Snow? Check.

Trees? Barely visible, but check.

There were no footprints in the snowy ground, which Shikari deduced must mean that she had been sleeping (or knocked out) long enough for whoever had kidnapped her to vanish without a trace.

She uttered a curse under her breath, wishing her mother was there to scold her.

Instead, she was meant with the eerie silence of the snowy forest she was it. At least she thought she was in a forest. She was from Konoha, which meant she rarely ever really saw snow. And when her village did experience snow, she'd spent it inside more often than not, seeking warmth from her bed.

Shikari shakily pushed herself up, painfully aware that if she didn't find any shelter, she'd freeze to death.

She didn't fancy sleeping forever just yet.

The cold wind blew right into her, causing her to wince in pain. It was so cold that it actually hurt her. But she forced herself to move her legs anyway, to blindly walk into the woods, picking up sticks and stones for fire along her way.

She wasn't sure where she was.

But she had to make sure to survive.

Otherwise she'd never see her troublesome parents again. Or Choji. Or troublesome Kiba. Or troublesome Ino. Or troublesome Naruto. Their smiling faces was, surprisingly enough, a good enough motivation for the Nara to pick up her pace.

She arranged her gathered materials into a proper bed for the fire, all while playing her Academy teacher's instructions in her head. Finally, after she was sure that the sticks she had gathered were properly placed, she tried starting a fire with two sticks. Her teacher had taught her and her classmates how to start fires with either rocks or sticks for their survival training, promising to teach them basic Fire techniques during their last year.

The Nara really wished Sasuke was here to help, considering the boy already knew quite a few Fire techniques. Shikari didn't really like the boy at all, but she knew surviving the cold would have been easier with Sasuke around with his fancy Uchiha techniques. Don't get her wrong, Shikari knew how to spit fire out of her mouth in _theory_ , she just didn't fancy burning her tongue.

She'd rather stick with her Clan techniques and the basic Three she learned from the Academy.

The lazy girl smiled in satisfaction as a fire started to emerge.

 _'Ha, guess I'm not as much of a loser as Naruto...'_ she thought to herself, sighing in relief at the little warmth her fire had to offer.

She wouldn't be able to last in her clothes, she knew. She didn't have any equipment on her either, not even her hair tie.

Pursing her lips, she eyed the green wood near her which would cause excessive smoke if she placed it on the fire. If she was lucky, someone nearby might see it. Or unlucky, if someone dangerous saw it.

"I..might end up dead either way," she muttered the reality of her own situation to herself.

There was _nothing_ she could do.

She was barefooted, clad in her night kimono, unarmed and surrounded by the cold.

Her chances of survival was very minimal, even if there were people searching for her.

"Troublesome," she closed her eyes, ignoring how her heart beat in fear.

She didn't want to die.

Taking a chance, she threw the green wood onto the fire, hoping there were people nearby.

Her eyes never left the fire she had built, even when she lay in the snow, too cold to even move.

 _'I can't close my eyes...troublesome...can't...'_

Her eyelids dropped anyway, welcoming sleep.

Surviving the cold sounded too troublesome anyway, she coaxed herself in a typical lazy manner, accepting death.

Death, however, would not be accepting her.

For she jolted awake when she felt someone lifting her up.

Her eyes opened, her body tried to move but the cold had already numb it enough. The sound of a neighing horse registered in her ears and her eyes caught the dark hair of her savior.

"Father...?"

" _I'm surprised you're even alive, girl,_ "

Not her father then.

A stranger.

Despite how weary she felt, Shikari's eyes closed again.

* * *

 _ **Chapter End.**_

* * *

 _ **Author's note:**...yup, another story, fueled by my recent obsession with the Game of Thrones. (I'm at season 5, no spoilers please!) Sooo anyway, fem!Shikamaru meets Game of Thrones. What could go wrong?_

 ** _Questions:_**

 ** _1\. Which Stark will Shikari get along with best?_**

 ** _2\. Which character will Shikari dislike most?_**


	2. Winterfell

_"Can a man be brave when he's afraid?"_

* * *

 **Chapter two:**

 **Winterfell**

* * *

When Shikari Nara woke up, she didn't immediately open her eyes. It was a habit of hers to wake up _without_ really opening her eyes, but to make it more simple: her mind was awake, but her body was "resting" to the outside world. Shikari had developed this habit of hers since she was five, in order to get out of doing chores when her mother was away or to just listen in to conversations.

No one really suspected a lover of sleep like her to have that habit.

Except her father, Shikaku Nara.

He could always tell when she was actually awake.

" _Who is the girl?_ "

" _For the fourth time, I do not know brother._ "

There were two men in the room she was in, from what Shikari could deduce. She was also laying on a bed of some sort, not her usual futon. Also, the language that the men were speaking was nothing like her own, which may or may not rule off the kidnapping her because she's the Nara heiress theory. Though, Shikari wasn't sure if they were just speaking this strange language on purpose or if they really didn't know her language.

Either way, it put her at a disadvantage called language barrier, which greatly reduced her chance of communicating and inquiring about Konoha.

A sigh escaped one of the two men in the room. " _And you found her all alone in the snow?_ "

" _She was freezing brother and you saw what she was wearing before. I could not just leave her to die._ "

" _I understand. She is lucky your paths crossed, otherwise..._ "

A silence befell the room.

Shikari, knowing she couldn't feign sleep forever, took this as her chance to "wake up" by fake stirring. Her eyes, the typical Nara brown, wearily opened and she immediately felt the men staring at her as she sat up, wincing a bit at the effort it took.

She absently noted that she had been dressed up into a dress and bit back a cringe, she preferred her normal clothes, but at least this dress she was wearing did a better job at fighting the cold than her kimono did. She was still cold though.

"Which one of you was the one who found me?" Shikari asked, narrowing her eyes at them in focus.

Neither gave away any recognition.

Their body language gave away the exact opposite, confusion.

" _What is she saying?_ "

" _I don't recognize the tongue at all, perhaps I could ask Maester Luwin..._ "

Shikari, despite not understanding them at all, got her question answered anyway. It seemed like it was the younger man who saved her, since his voice matched the one in her faint memory of the night before.

" _Little girl, can you...understand us?_ "

Shikari stifled a yawn once she realized that her savior was looking at her in an expectant manner.

There goes her dreams of never having someone expect something from her.

"Troublesome," she sighed feeling a headache coming on, no doubt she would have to learn the language that they were speaking.

Why her and not them?

They were the majority and she was the minority. It was only logic that she would have to be the one to dedicate time into learning whatever language it was they were speaking, in order to make sense of the situation.

So, without much thought, she pointed at herself. "Shikari Nara," she slowly pronounced. Again, no recognition flickered in them at her name and Shikari prided herself in being a good observer.

" _That's her name, I'm guessing.._ "

Her savior looked at her with curious eyes. " _My name is Benjen Stark_."

The older man, who Shikari deduced was probably Benjen's sibling, followed suit. " _My name is Eddard Stark_."

Shikari saw that just like her, they were waiting for a reaction. But just like them, she had no idea who they were or if they were anyone important. Maybe they were, maybe they weren't.

More importantly, the Nara were prized for their intelligence.

Shikari, despite how lazy she was, knew she was smart if she put her mind to it. And she knew that in order to learn this weird language these men spoke, she'd have to memorize the phrases they use, learn the words and understand the basics before she can attempt anything else.

" _My name is Shikari Nara_ ," Shikari forced out, cringing at how awkward she sounded.

Benjen and Eddard both looked at her in interest.

" _She's a quick learner, despite the accent,_ " Benjen noted in amusement. " _I'd say she'll learn the Common Tongue before her next name day, should she get the opportunity._ "

Shikari nervously shifted at the intense look Benjen was giving her, as if he expected something from her. What, she didn't really want to know. She just really wanted to go home to her family. Feed her clan's deers. See Naruto, Ino and Choji.

" _...you want me to take her in don't you?_ "

" _You took in the Greyjoy, so why not this girl?_ "

Benjen extended his hand towards Shikari, an encouraging smile on his face.

Wearily, the Nara placed her hand in his.

" _Well behaved and cautious. When she learns the Common Tongue, I am sure she will get along with your_ _children._ "

Eddard had a little smile as well. " _I will make her my ward then_."

" _And if she ever wants to leave?_ "

" _I will respect her decision._ "

Shikari eyed the smiling men in suspicion, her grip tensing in Benjen's hand.

Noticing her sudden tension, Benjen gave her a comforting squeeze.

" _Shikari Nara,_ " Eddard started, earning her attention. " _Welcome to Winterfell._ "

" _Winterfell_?" Shikari repeated the last word, eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

With a nod, Benjen gestured to the window that revealed the outside of the building they were in. Shikari eyed the people as they walked about, seemingly content with their lives. The young Nara, despite how kind the men were being, couldn't help but feel fear inside her. She was far away from her home.

Where in the world was she?

Perhaps in the Land of Snow?

She was scared.

She hadn't been this scared in a while.

"Troublesome."

* * *

 _ **Chapter End.**_

* * *

 **Author's note:** _soo short update huh? The chapters will get longer once Season 1 kicks in. Until then, the chapter lengths will vary depending on when I update. Meaning, semi-frequent updates have short chapters and if I don't update in at least 2 weeks then the next chapter will have at least 3k words._

 **Questions:**

 **1\. Which Kingdom will Shikari like best?**

 **2\. Which of Shikari's ninja skills will be most useful to her in the world she's in?**


	3. Outcasts

"Naruto's my friend. That's why I was brave. " -Shikari Nara

* * *

 **Chapter Three:**

 **Outcasts**

* * *

Shikari, with the ease of something akin to a growing habit, scratches a straight line on a wooden table. The new line was barely noticeable among the other thirty four ones. The Nara heiress had been in Winterfell for five weeks now. In all those five weeks, she had only interacted with Maester Luwin whom was teaching her the Common Tongue among other stuff, Eddard Stark whom she had found out was the Lord of Winterfell and Benjen Stark, who had left around four weeks ago.

"Lady Catelyn will not be pleased," Luwin neutrally pointed out, as he had been doing for the past five weeks.

"What a drag," Shikari yawned, absently noting she would have to find out how to say her favorite word in the Common Tongue. "Lady Catelyn has not even come to meet me yet."

Luwin smiled at her as he flipped through his book. "Soon you will be formally introduced to Lady Catelyn and her children."

"Why now?" Shikari asked while writing down words from the Common Tongue in a book she had been given to improve her grammar and vocabulary. Learning the Common Tongue was arguably one of the most challenging things Shikari had and was still going through. After all, her mother tongue consisted of kanji, which didn't exist in the Common Tongue.

"Because you have reached a certain mastery of the Common Tongue, enough to hold conversations with others. I must applaud you for learning so quickly."

"All I do is learn words, write, eat and sleep. Definitely I would know to talk now."

"Obviously," Luwin corrected. "Obviously I would know how to talk now."

"Obviously," Shikari repeated, adding the word to her growing vocabulary. "How many children does the Lady has?"

"Five. Robb, Sansa, Arya, Bran and Rickon."

"How clarity," Shikari sarcastically said.

"How enlightening."

Shikari rolled her eyes at the correction, already used to constantly being corrected. She couldn't even be annoyed anymore. Though now, she could say that she understood Naruto's frustration at constantly being corrected. Unlike Naruto though, she knew it was better to be corrected than to keep making the same mistakes.

Naruto...

She wondered if Choji still hung out with the blond idiot, considering one of the only reasons Choji did so was because Shikari did. She hoped so. She hated seeing Naruto all alone, that's why she started hanging out with the energetic blond. She wondered, did the idiot blond miss her? Choji probably did. Ino too, even though the blonde probably wouldn't admit it. Did her family think she was dead? Did they already have a funeral for a living person?

"...are you thinking about your family again?"

"Yeah."

Luwin was giving her a sad smile now, one full of pity, reminding her of when she had basically cried when the man had showed her a map of the world. The world she didn't belong in.

"You miss them a lot."

"Obviously," Shikari gritted out. "Missing them will not help me."

"Do they know where you are?"

Shikari closed her book, in an unnecessarily loud way. She shouldn't be pissed, no one but her knew that her family didn't exist in this strange world she was in. However, Shikari Nara, despite her usual aloofness, couldn't just act nonchalant after basically losing everyone without even knowing why or at the very least who was responsible for her situation.

"It is time for me to retire."

Luwin nodded in acceptance. "Shall I send you food?"

Shikari shook her head, knowing that she wouldn't have an appetite, and then she left the library. The way from her room to the library and back was basically the only route Shikari knew. The walk was troublesome, considering her room was far away.

 **:::**

Finally, after what felt like a lifetime for Shikari, she had reached her room in the Stark house.

However, she didn't immediately enter her room, despite how much she wanted to just go sleep. She couldn't go to sleep right now, not when she noticed something off that was happening in front of her.

Her two neighbors, two boys who she assumed to be 'wards' just like her, were in what appeared to be a heated argument.

"Lady Catelyn will be happy about my absence," the dark haired boy gloomily told the other boy.

"Your brothers and sisters will not."

"It is better this way, Theon. Today marks the ten years since..."

Shikari didn't even bother turning away as the dark haired boy stared at her in surprise. Slowly, the other boy, Theon, turned to look at her as well. If she had to guess, perhaps they were surprised she was in their presence for longer than the usual five seconds before she entered her room.

"We, uh, did not see you standing there, m'lady," the dark haired boy shyly uttered.

Shikari gave a decidedly not ladylike snort. "I am _not_ a lady."

"She can speak..." Theon loudly muttered, more surprised.

"Thought I was mute?" Shikari asked, knowing all too well that the servants were spreading rumors about her being a mute since she never breathed a word around them when they were in her room.

Theon slowly nodded, before perking up. "It is nice to know you can talk. I am Theon Greyjoy, a ward here in the North."

Shikari raised an eyebrow. "You are the boy born from Iron Islands," she noted, recalling Luwin's lessons and brief mention of Eddard bringing a Greyjoy boy here as a ward, or hostage depending on one's point of view.

She didn't bat an eyelash at the brief strain to Theon's friendly smile and instead focused her eye on the dark haired boy whom she would often share greeting nods with whenever she saw him. "And you?"

"I'm Jon Snow."

"He's Lord Eddard's bastard son," Theon added, his words making Jon grimace slightly.

"Bastard son?" Shikari repeated, not familiar with the concept. "What does that mean?"

"Lady Catelyn is not my mother," Jon explained. "My mother was someone else."

Though not satisfied at the explanation, Shikari nodded. "Bastard or not, you are Lord Eddard's son." Her words earned her a grateful smile from the boy and she decided she would ask Luwin more about 'bastards' instead of the boys in front of her.

Now, at least, she knew why she and the boys had rooms far away from others. They were all outsiders.

A yawn escaped her and she decided she would talk to the boys some other time.

"I am tired," she casually informed as she walked to her room.

"What is your name?" Theon boldly asked.

"Mendokusai."

That was all she muttered as she closed the door, not caring to reveal her name to the boys just yet. From what she had gathered, people would know her name soon enough already.

"Mendo...what?" Theon asked, loud enough for her to hear.

"Mendokusai," Jon answered.

Shikari was slightly surprised that Jon heard her muttering.

"What a weird name," Theon commented.

Wait...

They thought _troublesome_ was her name? She was the least troublesome person she knew! And she wasn't even being arrogant, it was a fact. But it would be too troublesome to correct them.

"What a drag," she sighed as she dropped onto her bed, not even caring to change from the plain pastel colored dress she was forced to wear. She'd rather wear trousers like the boys do, but it would be troublesome to hear people nag at her.

Soon enough, sleep overcame her.

 _"Hey Shika?"_

 _Shikari didn't bother tearing her gaze away from her beloved clouds. "Yeah Cho?"_

 _"How are you so brave?"  
_

 _"Huh? What are you talking about?" Shikari turned a confused look to Choji._

 _Choji wasn't looking at her, no instead he was looking sullenly down at his bag of chips._

 _"Yesterday at the Academy...you stood up for Naruto against our sensei."_

 _"So? The way he was treating the idiot was troublesome."_

 _"It was, but no one else stood up for him. Not even Ino. But you did. You're brave."_

 _Shikari snorted in disagreement. "I'm a coward Cho," she contradicted. "I run away from problems, not face them."_

 _"But you weren't a coward yesterday."_

 _"...no, I wasn't."_

 _"Why?"_

 _"...Naruto's my-"  
_

Shikari's eyes opened, her ears straining with the small amount of chakra she was adding to them. The sound that had jolted her awake was now easier for her to hear. It was the sound of a sobbing boy.

 _'It isn't any of my business,'_ she told herself even as she got out of her bed and got outside her room.

The sound was coming from the room to her left, which meant it was Theon who was silently crying. Shikari muttered a troublesome under her breath as she quietly entered the boy's room. Usually, she was annoyed at the fact that her and the boys' rooms didn't have locks, but for once she was grateful for this.

Slowly, and with silent steps, she made her way over to the Greyjoy's bed.

"Theon," she calmly uttered, knowing she would have to be gentle for once as she brushed away the boy's hair from his sweaty face. "Why are you crying?" Ouch. Even she felt she wasn't being tactful. Naruto was a bad influence on her.

Thankfully, it seemed the boy was merely crying in his sleep.

 _'Nightmare then,'_ Shikari concluded. She felt bad for Theon, because she got nightmares too.

"My family, I...miss..."

Shikari's heart definitely went out for Theon at the boy's unconscious rambling.

Wordlessly, she climbed on the boy's bed and stared at the ceiling while playing with the boy's hair in an attempt to sooth him.

As if reacting to her comforting presence, Theon curled up to her.

Shikari allowed him to.

 _'Winterfell is cold, so it's nice to have some warmth.'_

The fact that it was from a fellow outcast made her not feel pathetic.

 **:::**

 **Chapter End.**

 **:::**

 **Author's note:** _I wanted this chapter to be longer, but I didn't want to immediately jump to Shikari speaking fluent English just yet. Although she's got a grasp of the simple words or phrases, she still has no idea how to say words like 'troublesome' 'precious' 'illuminating' etc. Also, wanted to use this moment to explain some important stuff to y'all._

 **Why is Shikari learning the Common Tongue so fast?**

 _To answer, she spent roughly 5 weeks only learning the Common Tongue. Not only that, but Shikari's is a female Shikamaru. And let's be honest, Shikamaru is basically a genius. Female or not. I'm planning to extend more on the 'learning a language fast' bit later on, but for now be patient and know that I have my future in-story explanations._

 **When in the story are we?**

 _I'd say we are six years before Season One Episode One takes place._

 **How old are the Stark children at the moment?**

 _Jon- 10 (same as Shikari)_

 _Sansa- 7_

 _Robb- 11 (same as Theon)_

 _Arya- 5_

 _Bran- 4_

 _Rickon- not born yet._

 _Note: In the previous chapters Shikari has been stated to be 9, but I have decided to change it to 10._

 **Why flashbacks and will they continue?**

 _I use the flashbacks to highlight that Shikari, despite how emotionally mature and nonchalant she seems, does indeed miss her friends. Also, the flashbacks will give some more insight to Shikari's character. Because by simply being female, Shikamaru/Shikari has altered her own world a bit before she ripped away from it. Flashbacks will continue, but they won't take up half of a chapter._

 **What jutsus does Shikari know? Will she learn more?**

 _Currently, Shikari knows the basic Three Academy taught ones. (substitution, clones, transformation.) She also knows some of her basic Clan Ones, such as the trademark Shadow Possession. I believe that Shikari has the mental prowess to help herself learn other jutsus or techniques later on, such as perhaps the Tree Walking, Body Flicker or even an elemental jutsu. (Suggestions are welcomed.)_

 **What's the pairing?**

 _In the summary, I said this is a "fem!Shikaxmany" which means what I wrote. Shikari and many. Meaning, multiple love interests. Now, I don't know if I'm gonna let it end with a **real** harem ending or have her choose one person in the end. But for heaven's sake, this is Game of Thrones! Shikari will have her harem! (Because honestly, I see her potentially hooking up with a lot of people.) As of now, the list I have of her love interests' is still open for suggestions. **Note:** if you do give a suggestion, please state why. _

**Who is currently on my list of Shikari's harem?**

 _Starks, Lannisters, Baratheons, Greyjoys, outcasts, bastards, cripples, broken things, girls, boys, etc. Have fun guessing~!_


End file.
